SEATTLE —A group collecting signatures for two initiativessaid they are experiencing violenceand are asking for the enforcement of state laws.
“The violence this year is about ten times what it was in a previous year,” Founder of Let’s Go Washington Brian Heywood said.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE |Signature gatherers in Washington face threats amid ballot initiatives
Let’s Go Washington iscollecting signatures for two initiatives for the legislature. One is about parents’ rights as they relate to their kids in school. The second would prohibit transgender girls from playing on sports teams that align with their identity.
“We can have heated discussions and heated arguments, and you can vehemently think that I’m a terrible person,” Heywood said. “But [violence and intimidation] shouldn’t be the way we resolve the issue.”
Heywood said that in just the first few weeks of signature collecting, gatherers were met with people trying to undo or stop their efforts.
“Our signature gatherers were getting attacked, the initiatives were being stolen, people were being intimidated,” Heywood said.
State elected officials have come out against these actions. Secretary of State Steve Hobbs said, “Signature gathering is a right, and every voter deserves to participate in our democratic process, free from pressure, threats, or interference.”
Heywood, though, is asking for more action against those breaking the law and trying to stunt the democratic process.
“Make it very clear that this is the law and this is what needs to be enforced,” Heywood said. “It’s not okay to threaten or intimidate.”
State lawsays it is a gross misdemeanor to interfere with signature collectionby threats or intimidation.
Heywood said now, not only have people on the ground experienced those acts, but the team has also lost hundreds, if not thousands, of signatures for the petitions.
“Thousands of people who have signed their names have either had their signature stolen, or had the sheet ripped up, we’ve had people pretend they were going to sign and put a big ‘X’ over it,” Heywood said.
Heywood is encouraging anyone who may have signed a petition and is worried their signature was ripped up or stolen to go to their website to request a new signature form. He said that it will be at no cost to you.If your signature is duplicated, it will only be counted once by the Secretary of State’s office. The group has until Jan. 2 to collect nearly 309,000 valid signatures for each initiative.
트위터 공유: 워싱턴 서명 운동 폭력과 위협에 맞서다